The C.A.R.P. TestThe quality of your final research project is.docx

The C.A.R.P. Test
The quality of your final research project is related to the
quality of the sources you use.
As one professor put it, “garbage in, garbage out.” Applying the
C.A.R. P. Test is one way to evaluate the quality and value of a
source (book, article, website, etc.) before you start writing.
Ask yourself these questions to determine if the source is one
you should use….
C
Currency
_ How recent is the information?
_ Can you locate a date when the resource was
written/created/updated?
_ Based on your topic, is this current enough?
_ Why might the date matter for your topic?
A
Authority
_ Can you determine who the author/creator is?
_ What are their credentials (education, affiliation, experience,
etc.)?
_ Who is the publisher or sponsor of the work/site?
_ Is this publisher/sponsor reputable / academic / scholarly?
R
Reliability
_ What kind of information is included in the resource?
_ Is the content primarily opinion?
_ Is the information balanced or biased?
_ Does the author provide citations & references for quotations
& research data?
P
Purpose / Point of View
_ What’s the intent of the article (to persuade you, to sell
something, etc.)?

_ For Web resources, what is the domain (.edu, .com, etc.)?
How might
that influence the purpose/point of view?
_ Are there ads on the Web site or in the resource? How do they
relate to
the topic being covered (e.g., an ad for ammunition next to an
article
about firearm legislation) ?
_ Is the author presenting fact or opinion?
*Based on the original CRAP TEST created by
Librarian Molly Beestrum, Dominican University
1
2
Running head: Training Needs Assessment
Training Needs Assessment Proposal

Introduction:
I had my interview with a manager of a local
Mediterranean grocery store and a restaurant combined. The
interview was in person and it lasted for about 20 minutes. This
small business has about 10 employees, the grocery store offers
the basic grocery needs for families from Mediterranean origins
and who live in the U.S. also it has a poultry section. At the
same time, there is a middle door that connects between the
grocery store and the restaurant. There are about 8 employees
working in this place, however, the restaurant and the grocery
store are running separately. Meanwhile, the interviewee
mentioned that he manages this store besides other nine grocery
stores, and sometimes it is hard to keep up with the demands for
all the nine stores. Also, he mentioned that the biggest concerns
he faces are competition with other local Mediterranean grocery
stores, make the customer from different origins satisfied with
the quality of the products and the prices. As a matter of fact,
he stated that honesty and trust is more valuable for us than
having a quick income.
Area of Need:
During this short interview, the interviewee mentioned several
issues and he presented a few examples about the current status
of this business. Mainly, he said that the goal is to win
customers’ satisfaction through honesty and trustworthiness
with their products and keep prices reasonable. Also, they want
to beat the other local Mediterranean grocery stores by
promoting their products with reasonable prices. At the
meantime, the grocery store needs an additional employee
whose job is to clean the shelfs, arrange and reorganize the
shelfs, put products on the right shelfs. This has to be done
because there are different products stacked on the floor and

there is not enough employee to put all these products at the
right place on the shelfs. The decoder seems to be old and the
floor has to be shined or replaced. Also, the dairy products
freezer need to be cleaned, rearranged and have a clear price
label on the products. Nevertheless, some of the products may
be expired because no one checks the expiration dates. Also, the
outside displays need some attention.
Proposed Assessment:
Based on my observation for this small business and the
testimonies from the grocery store manager, I believe that
SWOT analysis assessment, by Robert Stewart, Albert
Humphrey and coworkers, is beneficial for this business. The
reason because the manager needs to know strength and
weaknesses for the himself and his employees, opportunities
that they may have in their area, and threats they might face
when no improvements are made (“SWOT Analysis Resource
Page,” 2006). So, the issues with this business is the manager
needs to focus more on what he can improve on his managerial
skills, since he manages nine stores. Similarly, when he knows
his weakness he would have a better idea on what not to do, and
this applies to all the employees. Moreover, he can explore what
other options he has to develop this business and expand it,
potentially. Also, find out what other threats might harm his
business in any way, and he can avoid some future problems
when he realizes the threats for this business. For instance, the
manager can have promotional products that attract the
customers, and he also can reduce the prices and sell larger
quantities than the less quantity he uses to sell. By this way he
sells the products fast and avoid keeping them until they
expired.
Recommendations and Conclusions:
When the grocery store manager takes the SWOT assessment he

might improve his business and enhance his managerial skills.
Also, when the employees take this test they may not be
benefited as their manager because their job is limited, unlike
their manager where he has to manage this store besides another
eight store. In the GROW model, the W in who would do it? Is
the manager himself. Finally, based on what I was able to
observe in this store, I came up with a few recommendations
that the manager could consider; there should be at least one
additional employee whose job is to make sure that the grocery
store and the restaurant are clean every day, organize the
products on the shelves. Also, have a clear price labels on the
products inside the freezer. In addition, clean all the
refrigerators near the poultry section and keep the products
organized. In fact, change the displays advertisements outside,
so this attracts the customers when they drive by. Also, remodel
the place by changing the celling decors and the floor. I believe
that this business is going to improve when the manager takes
some of these suggestions seriously.
References:
Academic Affairs - SWOT Analysis Resource Page | Idaho State
University. (2006). Retrieved from
http://www2.isu.edu/acadaff/swot/

1
Introduction: The Interview
I conducted my Needs Assessment interview with a Senior
Executive (S.E.) government
employee who is also the branch chief of an engineering
division. The interview took place in-
person and lasted exactly 20 minutes. Through the course of the
conversion, the branch chief
S.E. explained to me that he oversees around 75 employees,
who are a diverse mixture of
engineers, administrators, scientists and contractors. His job is
multifaceted and his
responsibilities are diverse. Some responsibilities include
coordinating projects between his
superiors and his direct reports, writing reports to brief to high
ranking officials, off-site
investigation, personnel feedback and general operations
management. His main concern in
completing his job is having the appropriate funding to
adequately support his personnel and his
branch’s functions. There have been major miscommunications

between other S.E.’s in his
branch and their commanding officers, which has affected the
branch’s function and funding. An
example was given wherein an S.E. reported to a Commanding
Officer (C.O.) that a project was
going well when it was actually under-functioning and under-
funded. The S.E. reporting to the
C.O. was aware of the funding and performance issue but
intentionally did not give the negative
report and subsequently mislead the C.O.’s impression of the
situation. The truth was eventually
disclosed and the fallout caused further damage to ripple
throughout the branch.
Area of Need:
The branch chief S.E. being interviewed stated that the
aforementioned story is a prime
example of things that are wrong within his branch. However,
the problem doesn’t start at the
branch level; it comes down from the senior executive
leadership. There is a fear of honest

2
communication which frequently leads to intentional diversion
of communication, lack of
communication or even blatant lying. This fear stems from the
C.O.’s negative reaction. Though
the branch chief S.E. was understandably upset with the S.E.
who misinformed their C.O. of the
branch and divisions functions, he noted that it was common
place and even workplace culture
for events like this to happen. He stated that he thought this
occurred due to the expectation the
C.O.’s and their superiors have of never hearing “no.” A lot of
shame is associated in this
workplace culture with those who cannot meet the C.O.’s and
the C.O.’s superior’s expectations.
The branch chief S.E.’s goal would be to see more (or any)
honest communication happen in the
vertical chain of command as well as horizontally through the
branch. Though the reality of the
situation is antithetical, he hopes there could be more
understanding in the higher tiers of
leadership for what happens in the lower and bottom tiers,

rather than having the expectation that
all desires will be met no matter the manpower, financial or
time constraints that realistically
exist.
Proposed Assessment:
Based on the aforementioned issues, I think the Organizational
Culture Inventory could
be of great benefit to the branch chief S.E. as well as his
counterparts and superiors. The main
issue that seems to be a theme in all of the problems the branch
chief S.E. stated, including the
story of the C.O. miscommunication, is a workplace culture that
encourages lack of
communication or intentional misrepresentation of issues and
project status’. In their research
paper, “Behavior Norms and Expectations: A Quantitative
Approach to the Assessment of
Organizational Culture,” R.A. Cooke and D.M. Rousseau note
that “Organizational culture [is
the] shared beliefs and values guiding the behavioral styles of
members” (Cooke & Rousseau,

3
1988) and that it’s usually been assessed qualitatively
(subjectively) but can now be assessed
more quantitatively (objectively) through the Organizational
Culture Inventory. Cooke and
Rousseau go on to state that “The Organizational Culture
Inventory…profiles the culture of
organizations and their subunits in terms of behavioral norms
and expectations” (Cooke &
Rousseau, 1988). It was actually Cooke who came up with the
idea and understanding of the
Organizational Culture Inventory and first explained its
implementation and benefit of
quantitatively identifying workplace issues caused by flawed
culture.
Recommendations and Conclusion:
If the Organizational Culture Inventory were to take place in
the branch chief S.E.’s
branch and division, I believe that most likely outcome or the
expected result would an honest

“un-veiling” of the practices and workplace culture. This
dysfunctional culture breeds dishonesty
and cover-up within the branch and division, horizontally and
vertically along the chain of
command. The leaders don’t want to hear it and the
subordinates don’t want to say it. There’s a
refusal to acknowledge issues, which in turn, makes them
worse. In order for true change to
occur, the “Will” in G.R.O.W. would need to come from the top
officials, down and I believe
this could happen if the leaders are able to quantitatively
understand how destructive the culture
and subsequent situation actually is. The subordinates whose
jobs rely on the good graces of the
higher-tiered leadership are less likely to promote this change if
it endangers their job safety. For
the change to happen, all leadership (official and unofficial)
needs to be involved, from the top to
the bottom; an agreement that a new culture and mode of
operating needs to happen would allow
and protect the growth of true and beneficial group and cultural
change.

4
References
Cooke, R.A. Rousseau, D.M. (1988). Behavioral Norms and
Expectations: A Quantitative
Approach to the Assessment of Organizational Culture. Group
& Organization
Management, 13 (3), 245-273.

5
OL 3040: LIST OF COMMON ASSESSMENTS *This is not a
comprehensive list, only more commonly known measurements
to address various org. needs
Assessment Author / Year Various Uses
Ind. Team Org. /
Env.
Purpose
DISC John Greir (1958)
Behavior assessment tool based on the DISC theory of
psychologist William Marston whose theory centers around four
different personality traits: Dominance, Inducement,
Submission, and

Compliance.
Myers-Briggs Personality Type
Inventory (MBTI)
Katherine Briggs / Isabel
Myers (1962)
A psychometric questionnaire based on the work of Carl Jung,
designed to measure psychological preferences in how people
perceive
the world and make decisions
Thomas-Killman Conflict Mode
Instrument (TKI)
Ken Thomas & Ralph
Kilmann (1974)

Designed to assess an individual’s behavior among five styles
in
conflict situations based on assertiveness and cooperativeness.
Leadership Practices Inventory
(LPI)
Jim Kouzes & Barry Posner
(1997)
Assesses leadership behaviors on 5 research-based practices
from the
book, The Leadership Challenge
Group Development Questionnare
(GDQ)
Susan Wheelan
(1996)
Assesses the developmental level of groups based on group
theory;

also provides information for helping members clarify roles and
group
goals.
Holmes & Rahe Life Stress Scale Thomas Holmes and Richard
Rahe (1967)
life stressors
and an individual’s tendency toward physical illness.
Mayer-Salovey-Caruso Emotional
Intelligence Test (MSCEIT)
Mayer & Salovey
(1990)
essments measure concepts / constructs of
Emotional
Intelligence (depending on their definitions / theories).
Emotional Quotient Inventory
(EQi)
Reuven Bar-
Organizational Culture Inventory Cooke & Lafferty (1983)

Provides organizations with a visual profile of their operating
cultures
(Current Culture) in terms of the behaviors that members
believe are
required to "fit in and meet expectations." Culture includes the
organization values, visions, norms, working language, systems,
symbols, beliefs and habits.
SWOT Analysis Albert Humphrey
A structured planning method used to evaluate
the Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats involved
in
a project or in a business venture. A SWOT analysis can be
carried out
for a product, place, industry or person.
Wiesbord’s Six-
assess the functioning of organizations. It is a generic
framework
and is intended for use across a wide variety of organizations.
thinking into six clear functions and roles. Each

thinking role is identified with a colored symbolic "thinking
hat."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/William_Marston
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychometrics
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Psychology
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Plan
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Project
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Business
NEEDS ASSESSMENT PROPOSAL GUIDE
pro·pos·al Noun /prəˈpōzəl/
A plan or suggestion put forward for consideration
The Training Needs Assessment Proposal is a professional
document that provides valuable
insight for specific organizational problems or phenomena. The
research is an ‘organic’
process between facilitators and key organizational members.
This means that although
there is a methodology for research, we are often at the mercy
of the availability and
information given by others. It involves understanding an
organization’s history /
background, identifying a particular problem, suggesting
specific processes (or
interventions) and predicting the possible outcomes. Needs
Assessment Proposals from
trained (experienced) consultants are often reviewed by

organizational leaders and used as
contracts to negotiate a relationship. For this course, the Needs
Assessment Proposal is
strictly used as an academic exercise to introduce undergraduate
students to the proposal-
writing experience.
1. PROJECT SUMMARY
Choose an organizational setting and interview a person in a
position of leadership
Secure permission from the organizational leader and conduct
an interview (20 min)
Identify a specific organizational need (the gap between ‘what
is’ and ‘what ought to be’)
Select an assessment, model, or theory, which would be an
effective approach to
intervention (based on Whitmore’s GROW model).
Provide recommendations / conclusions based on a proposed
application of assessment
2. SELECT AN ORGANIZATION
This decision should be a realistic one when considering type of
setting, time, effort,
availability of interviewee and location.
– Choose an organization that would be
open to students of
Wright State allowing for on-site visits. Be aware that some
organizations cannot
afford the time and efforts involved for students to conduct on-

site interviews.
Be respectful and careful not to appear intrusive. It is
imperative that you secure
permission (phone, email, etc.) to conduct the interview.
Time – You have a limited amount of time to conduct an
interview during this
course. Choose an organization that will allow ample time to
collect information
for your proposal. Be sure you are clear with organizational
leaders concerning
the amount of time needed to be on-site, conducting interviews,
observing, etc.
Staying longer than expected will appear disrespectful and
intrusive.
OL 3040 | Needs Assessment Proposal Guide
Page 2
Some possible examples:
A small / local company in need of improving morale of
employees
A not-for-profit association or Church board lacking strategies
for planning
A team in need of understanding conflict styles
A manager in need of tools for assessing stress levels of

employees
Securing Permission
When conducting an interview, keep in mind the following:
Be professional and courteous—you represent Wright State
Be respectful of their time—if you say 20 minutes, mean it.
Be clear about your intentions; what / when / where/ how you
plan to conduct the
interview. Remember to include that your report will be
confidential and NOT
contain the organization’s name or names of members. The sole
purpose of this
report is to help WSU undergraduate students gain experience in
conducting a Needs
Assessment Proposal—not to broadcast an organization’s
problems.
3. IDENTIFYING AN ORGANIZATIONAL NEED
Interview with Organizational Contact
This course allows you to discover various ways to identify
specific needs in an
organizational setting. For this proposal, you are required to
conduct an interview with a
contact person of the chosen organization—preferably someone
in a management /
leadership role. The interview should contain the following:
The interview should be approximately 20 minutes in length.
The focus should be on a top-ranked issue or need—which can
be met through

training-- as determined by the organizational contact (your
interviewee).
Using Whitmore’s GROW model, explain G (what is the
desired goal) and R (what is
the current reality)?
During the interview, takes notes and pay attention to needs
that may align with
specific theories, models, or concepts from our course.
Ask the site contact for permission to interview others if
necessary. If no, then
please respect your site contact’s wishes.
Page 3
Interview Questions
Here are some guiding questions for your interview:
What might be some of your main concern(s) for the
organization at this time?
What specific areas (or gaps) exist between ‘the way things
are’ and ‘the way things
ought to be’?

What evidence do you have that might support the existence of
this gap?
Of the needs suggested, which one seems to be most important
to the organization
at this time?
What efforts have been made to try and address this need or
offer guidance to
identify, change, or resolve it? For example, has training
worked in the past?
4. PROPOSED ASSESSMENT
Based on information from the site contact interview, you will
research and propose an
assessment, model, or theory which may help in evaluating or
addressing the identified
organizational need.
Briefly describe your chosen assessment, model or theory, its
origin, its author(s), or
information about its development. Examples include
personality assessments, team
surveys, concepts on emotional intelligence, leadership models
or theories, time
management models, or similar concepts from leadership
research.
Describe how your chosen approach could address and /or
resolve the organizational
need. How does your assessment, model, or theory, work to
solve the need?
What other forms of data collection could be used to
specifically study this need?
What might be some limitations of using these various forms?

5. RECOMMENDATIONS & CONCLUSIONS
Applying your chosen assessment, model or theory, you will
recommend ways in which it
would be helpful toward increasing awareness (insight), or
bringing resolution toward
improving performance for this organization. Be sure your
intervention is realistic and could
be carried out in the real context of training. It is helpful to
answer the following:
What kinds of results might be produced by your chosen
assessment, model, or
theory?
Page 4
How might you use the assessment, model, or theory, in a
training situation, in order
to help this organization? Here, you are allowed to predict the
‘most likely’
outcomes, based on the information from your interview and
research.
6. WRITING THE NEEDS ASSESSMENT PROPOSAL
Use the following format for writing your team proposal:
Length should be 3-5 pages (no title page; but including
references page)

Double-spaced, (business report format); one-inch margins on
all sides; 12 pt. font
Create headings for each section; double-space between
sections
Any citations of sources should be in APA style with
References page
Proposal should be organized, professional and free of errors,
submit to Pilot drop box
Sections for Proposal
Introduction (heading) – half to full page
Briefly describe the organizational setting, who you
interviewed (their role)
Describe HOW you conducted the interview (in-person,
phone, etc.)
Keep the name of the organization and interviewee
confidential!
Area of Need (heading) – half to full page
Explain your site contact’s view / perception of the most
pressing organizational need
Be sure to use our course text GROW model: Goal (where
do they want to be?) and
Reality (what is their current state?)
Proposed Assessment (heading) – 1 page

Based on the need, what type of assessment, model, or
theory, would be most beneficial
to identifying and addressing the stated need? Using the
GROW model: Options
(what strategies / actions (assessment & training) could be
implemented?)
Describe the background, development, author(s) of this
chosen assessment.
Cite your source(es) used and include the full citation on the
References page
Page 5
Recommendations & Conclusions (heading) – half to full page
Describe the ‘most likely’ outcomes / results you might
expect from the
assessment, model, or theory, if it were to be applied.
What kind of intervention, training or other change initiative
would be most effective?

Using our GROW model: (What is to be done and/or Who
would do it?)
Page 6
Grading
This assignment is worth 35 points for the paper and 5 points
for evaluating a peer’s paper
(40 points total)

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